1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a percussion detecting apparatus that detects a beat signal for causing a drum device or the like to electronically generate a musical tone, according to a beat applied to a percussion surface, and an electronic percussion instrument.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an electronic percussion instrument, such as an electronic drum, generally has a percussion surface part formed by a rubber pad (see e.g. Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-47666). However, percussion feeling provided by the electronic percussion instrument is quite different from that provided by an acoustic percussion instrument.
On the other hand, there have also been proposed percussion detecting apparatuses having a percussion surface part formed of a mesh material (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354). These percussion detecting apparatuses provide percussion feeling closer to that obtained from an acoustic percussion instrument than the apparatus having a percussion surface part formed by a rubber pad. Further, the percussion detecting apparatuses are capable of reducing the tone volume of a percussion tone directly generated therefrom.
There is also known a percussion instrument using a percussion detecting apparatus and provided with a percussion pattern indicating function for informing a player of a percussion pattern including a beat position on a pad and beat intensity. For example, in the above-mentioned percussion instrument disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-47666, a plurality of LEDs are arranged in a fixed part below the percussion surface part, and a light transmitter is disposed on the rubber pad at a location above the LEDs (see FIGS. 6 and 7 in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-47666). When the rubber pad is beaten, the distance between a portion of the light transmitter close to the beat position and an LED corresponding to the portion of the light transmitter changes, which causes a change in the amount of light that can be visually recognized via the light transmitter. Thus, a percussion pattern is indicated.
This enables the player to recognize beat positions on the pad and beat intensities, which serves for practice for percussion performance, thereby helping the player to make rapid progress in performance. In addition, since musical performance is visually recognized, interest in the musical performance is increased, which makes the performance enjoyable.
If this percussion pattern indicating function could be provided in the above-mentioned percussion detecting apparatus whose percussion surface part is formed of a mesh material, it would be ideal from the viewpoint of percussion feeling and percussion sound.
However, in the percussion detecting apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354, since the percussion surface part is formed of a mesh material, it is not easy to attach the light transmitter to the percussion surface part. Even if the light transmitter could be successfully attached to the mesh material, durability of the portion of the percussion surface part where the light transmitter was attached would be low, and there is a fear that percussion feeling and sensing might be adversely affected by changes in the pattern of vibration of the mesh material during application of percussion. For this reason, in actuality, it has been impossible even to think of proving the percussion pattern indicating function in the percussion detecting apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354 which have the percussion surface part formed of the mesh material.
Further, even the percussion detecting apparatuses having the percussion surface part formed of the mesh material do not provide percussion feeling which perfectly matches that obtained from an acoustic percussion instrument, but tend to provide percussion feeling with slightly excessive resilience. Therefore, when the player having practiced at one of the percussion detecting apparatuses plays the acoustic percussion instrument, he/she inevitably feels a sense of incongruity, and hence the percussion detecting apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354 leave room for improvement. Furthermore, these percussion detecting apparatuses having the percussion surface part formed of the mesh material must be formed into a drum shape, and are low in the degree of freedom of design.
Further, it can be envisaged that pleasure will be further increased if the percussion pattern indicating function can be utilized for controlling musical tone generation in accordance with percussion.